Archive for November, 2009

 001Hawaii-1404_6262

This day seemed like several days all rolled up into one!

I guess that happens when you get up at 4am to go shoot sunrise a ways away and then shoot all the way until sunset.

When you are taking pictures and think back to that previous day when you were shooting near the lighthouse… oh wait that was earlier today.
Or when at the end of the day you can barely remember the beginning of the day because it seems like you’ve done sooo much since then.

That’s when you know you were pretty effective with the scheduling of your day.

The First “day”

Sunrise on the north point.
It included quite few miles of driving along along the coast line on fun dirt roads.
This was the longest day and we were in a bunch of different towns all along the northern coast.

 005Hawaii-0247_5493

“Day” 2

This day came in two distinct parts, but felt like they should be combined.
We went snorkeling in a bay and then met up with the wedding family and friends for some lunch and fun on the beach.

 034Hawaii-0928_0209

Using my little G11 to take some fun underwater shots.

The final “day”

We scouted out the location for the wedding and did sunset shots.

I don’t usually go visit the location before hand to figure things out, but we usually look for a place to do sunset and this was a phenomenal location.
I enjoyed being able to spot the possible locations and possible routes for the sunset since it comes and goes quite suddenly.
Turns out that info came in very handy for the wedding day and being overly prepared helped move things along smoothly.
I was also glad the element of spontaneity was still very much there and the pre-visit didn’t spoil it at all.

 003Hawaii-1432_6290

Sunset at this beach is pretty crazy awesome, but I thought i’d highlight some late twilight pictures taken a while after sunset.
Tripod required for this long exposure.

Look at the bunch of other “Day 3″ sunset pictures later in this post.

See all the Recap pictures after the jump

(more…)

 001_3S09683

(Above) Documenting the second half of thanksgiving day here are some Thanksgiving sunset pictures
As a sidenote this picture was a 10 second picture and to get low enough I took it off the tripod and propped it on the ground resting on my foot. 2.8 aperture. 250ISO
TIP: Wait about 15 minutes after sunset for the real lights show of twilight.

This thanksgiving I can be specially greatful to have the oportunity to spend 2 full weeks in Hawaii.

I’m also thankful to be able to have the ability to travel all around 2 islands with expensive camera equipment.

I’m thankful to have a Jeep… I would suggest to anyone coming to Kona (the big island) to rent a 4wd vehicle, unless you just plan on going to beaches.
If you plan on exploring at all… consider it a Must.

I’m thankful for sunsets, because they make everything look so much better.

 003_3S09567 002_3S09668

I’m thankful for good company. It really has been very helpful, imagine getting up at 4am to go out to a sunset, one could be very tempted to keep sleeping but knowing I can’t let someone else down and knowing that I get to watch someone else suffer makes it so much easier.

I’m thankful for a great family that took us in for thanksgiving and fed us as much as we could fit.

Above – Guava Cheesecake

 016_DSC5105 013_DSC5040

 018_DSC5132

I’m thankful for the wonderful bride that decided it was better to have me fly from Utah to do the wedding pictures. I charged less for my travel fee than some Hawaiin photographers from her Island (oahu)

I’m thankful that even though I fell in the Ocean my camera did not go in with about 2-3 inches to spare.
I’m thankful that even though the GPS went in it worked again.

I’m thankful I have a nice computer to do these blog posts even with the very little time that I’m back at the condo and awake.

 005_DSC5088

 007_DSC5263

(More pictures after the jump – or see all the recap pictures on SmugMug)

(more…)

Posted by ScottJarvie at 28 November 2009

Category: Jarvie Trip, Landscapes

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

 001_DSC4618

Having just a bit of time to pump this out I’ve opted to split the posts.
It’ll work out great because this day was naturally divided because it felt like 2-3 days in one.

The second half was comprised of thanksgiving.

But for the first half we wondered on a dirt road for hours going partially around the big mountain on the big island.
We could have gone all the way around but it would have taken most of the day and we needed to be back at noon for thanksgiving meal.

 002_DSC4660

I loved loved this road. I want to go back.
So in the middle of no where far from anywhere, and yet you’re on an island, so how far can you really be.

 008_DSC4704

 007_3S09036

I was so happy to shoot turkeys on thanksgiving day.
These wild ones are too skinny to make us want to pull out real guns.
A camera will do.

 003_3S09043 009_3S09043

 010dustin-_DSC2725

(Above) We did some time lapse with the tripod sticking through the top of the roof aimed at the road ahead.
We were very crafty on the setup. (Tip superclamps don’t really fit anywhere on the jeep, need something with a bigger clamper)

In reality the passenger will often sit in this position as we drive the back roads.

see more after the jump

(more…)

 002_DSC4411

So here we are at day 2

And we begin the post with a nice end of the day shot.
These types of trips you plan on picking a great spot for sunrise and sunset.
Well I think we got ourselves a nice sunset location.

There are a lot of rocky beaches, but this one was a nice sandy beach and I made it work.

Here’s some more stuff from the story of the second day.

Check out the full gallery of 28 pictures from the day 2 recap go here

This was only a few of the 1200+ pictures taken on day 2 (yesterday)

Cresting over the mountain, the unofficial west island sunrise.
Sunrise on the west side has some nice light but no color like I suppose you’d see if you were actually seeing the sunrise earlier in the morning.

 005_3S08704

Mid-morning holds some surprises on secluded beaches you get to with your 4wd vehicle

 017_3S08778

Mid-afternoon can be fun when clouds start participating a bit more.

 010_DSC4112

Clouds block the sun but they’re just about to release their captive prisoner the sun, for that little gap between heaven and earth.
Can you spot where the sun is about to drop down below the cloud level?

 004_DSC4312

Get your butt down in that water, get the camera low, not for the faint of heart, but it’ll make the great pictures.

 001_DSC4422

Ahh the reflections!

 003_DSC4398

Dang it people don’t even think of walking in the path of my picture…
…oh wait… now that I think about it… walk right in front of me.
That’s right, hold hands,… that’s cute!
Thanks for playing.

 012_DSC4322

(more…)

 005_DSC3420

I titled this recap post “Just across the street”
Because that’s where these pictures were taken.

By the time I flew in, rented the car, went to the condo, went and got some late lunch/dinner and bought some groceries It was now to late to travel somewhere to do sunset pictures… so I went accross the street!
What I’m trying to say is for less than the cost of a hotel room there are nice condos for rent in super nice locations.
The search for a good place paid off.

But I thought about calling it “Be ready and Wait for it” because that’s what happened.

To see all the pictures from the small Day 1 Recap go here

 001_3S08465
I had a great moment when with about 30 seconds notice I noticed something that was going to happen.
I quickly got ready and waited for it. When it happened it happened fast and there were no do-overs.
In those 5 seconds you had to hope all those years of learning how your camera functions best pays off.

 003_3S08478

The thing is you fire off a dozen or more pictures and then you can’t really decide which one is the best, because the subtle differences offer something good for each.

But when this moment is happening in a flash (pardon the pun) it’s this weird rush of excitement.
Subdued and peaceful, you feel like you want to shout out Yes! but no one is around, and well you don’t want to jinx the pictures anyway.
So it’s a quite victory. Plus you know you didn’t make the event happen, you just happened to be there.

 006_3S08487

Yes indeed Thanksgiving Day is already upon us in Hawaii!

(more…)

Posted by scott at 23 November 2009

Category: reviews

Highlighting JarvieDigital

For the rest of the month I’ll be highlighting the many projects and sites found on the JarvieDigital launch page http://jarviedigital.com

The launch page itself was designed by Thom Allen and Jake Spurlock with some prior input by Jonathan Bond

It seems fitting for the first highlight that I present a brand spanking new project… a blog.

All the Photographers BLOG

Finally here

I’ve been developing the idea for a while now, and have just recently freed up enough time to get it going.

Each day we’ll highlight a different photographer from all around the world doing different kinds of photography at different skill levels.

At the moment you’ll notice a lot of Utah photographers, as it was easiest to start off dealing with people I know.

There are already 10 photographer reviews and we have another 10 drafts which we’ll release on a consistent basis

Multiple authors

Next I’ll be training other authors how to log-in and create their own reviews.

If you are interested in being another author please drop us a line blog@allthephotographers.com we’d love to consider you.

Purpose

To share great photography with aspiring photographers and non-photographers alike.
The site is a jumping off point, these are only recaps of photographers, there will be links so people can go see more of their work.

A place you can go to find new people you might never have heard about.
It will also be used as a place where  people can search for photographers (by type of photography, country/state, and keywords)

We intend that the site inspires people with all the wonderful work and creativity.

Goals

To make great photographers more well known.
To share beautiful art.

I also have a personal goal to have several authors with multiple posts a day.
I also have a goal to hit 10,000 consistent readers by June .

To get involved

If you’re interested in either
Becoming an Author
Being reviewed

Feel free to send an email to blog@allthephotographers.com

I hope to stock pile a good 30-40 reviews in advance.

Photographers
If you’re a photographer or aspiring photographer, this can be one of the best opportunities to learn and be expired.
I know many of you already spend a lot of time searching for photographers.
Why not spend 20-30 extra minutes and create a post and share your finds with the rest of the world, and make better connections and network with other photographers.

Highlights so far:

Charles Uibel

DSC_5803

Whitney Lewis

(more…)

Quick Rant

I just quickly wanted to leave a couple of words. (Turned into a lot)
Drop a quick rant on the blog.

If you’re a photographer and you want my honest advice.
Here it is.

Think about how you present your pictures.

OK so I can sometimes be a bit lazy sometimes and though I have tons of ideas there is plenty i’ve thought of or appreciated in others that I have yet to implement.
Sometimes I try to stand on the principle that the pictures should speak for themself and I object to people trying so hard to present their pictures so nice to try to make up for obvious lack of quality.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

But if there is one thing that I believe strongly in… it’s first impressions.

Putting your best foot forward means lead with what you do best.

If you’re going to show your pictures, you should probably start with the best ones.

(Much more after the jump)

(more…)

 008_7153984

Hey look!!
I used a lensbaby on an actual photo-shoot.

These are wedding detail shots from two weddings.
Both were pictures of rings.

That’s not to say I probably couldn’t use it even more and get some really fun results.
But I just haven’t… many times the situation wasn’t right or I didn’t have enough time.

Focusing takes a lot longer so the situation had to be right.

Taking pictures of rings are cool… because they don’t move.
I did these without a tripod and it took a while.
I was using the macro filter adapters, and focusing and the depth of field was so narrow it was really hard to nail down.

I ogirinally bought the Lensbaby because I was trying to purchase the Nikon 105 macro and pictureline was out of stock that day.
Therefore I used the lensbaby to get Macros.

Next wedding I’m taking the G11 and testing it out to get some macros (details)

May I add I had a second generation lensbaby years ago… tried it on one wedding and never used it since.
The LensBaby composer is much more user friendly in my opinion.

To learn more about LensBaby go here

 186_7153978

 187_7153990
This is probably the most iconic LensBaby look… with the blurred edges.

First wedding that I used it on was the following

 055_7158570 471_7158562

 469_7158555

 473_7158568

 001_DSC2301

My blog posts hope to reach the following people in the following ways. (No particular order)

1. The client

By showing them their pictures in a short succinct recap, and giving them a quick method to show their pictures to their friends and family.

2. The clients friends and family.

By offering them a short recap of their friend or family member.
And also provide a link to the full gallery so they can see more if desired

3. Potential clients

By showing them what kind of work I’ve been doing recently.
After 4-5 years I keep on getting better every shoot.
It’s great to see many pictures from one shoot and know that I don’t just take a small handful of good pictures at each shoot.
Thus the longer posts

4. Friends and Family

Because they say they like to see what I’m up to.
They like to look at pictures. Or so they say ;)

5. Other photographers

-I think that’s a huge bulk of my audience.

I write many posts of photographers interest only.
Posts with tips and tricks directly mainly to photographers, specially the aspiring and learning types.

I also try to include teaching moments through almost all of my posts.
Like for instance, this post.

 002_DSC2063 004_DSC2037

That being said.

Here’s the link to the FULL GALLERY

 020_DSC2314

 007_DSC2057 008_DSC2057

This couple has yet to be married.

I’ll be in Hawaii when they get married.

They opted to do their wedding pictures on a previous day.

Why do people do their pictures on a previous day?

  • They’ll thus have these pictures in time for their wedding reception or dinner.
  • They’ll also have lots more time on their wedding day.
  • They won’t freeze as much on their wedding day. (popular for winter weddings)
  • We can pick any location.
  • We can shoot at any time.
  • It’s tons cheaper.
  • They can even get another photographer to do group shots if I’m not available.

Why do I like formals?

  • For many of the same reasons:
  • We can shoot at any time. (not just smack dab in the middle of the harshest light)
  • We can take our time and focus on better quality. (Wedding days are often very rushed)
  • We have more fun.
  • I can do more weddings this way.
  • They can show off the prints at the reception.

 042_DSC2123

This one is the product of Spencer … he decided he wanted to pick her up.
I welcome ideas, I don’t know what all a couple is wanting or willing to do.

Any when it comes from the couple themselves, it’s bound to be the favorite… because it was their own idea, their own moment.

(more…)

Posted by scott at 16 November 2009

Category: Events

Tags: , , , , ,

I don’t have everyone’s email and I’m not friends with everyone on facebook.
So i thought I’d put an update up on the blog and hope y’all see it.

Also so perhaps others can read and learn from how I did things. (Good and bad)

(more…)

 002_DSC2704

OK so I can’t honestly remember the last time I was caught up on my editing.
I think it might have been February… but then again maybe it was last November.

And as of this morning… well I still am not. (Kinda)
I’ll always have something to edit.
I could a few road trips I’ve never touched or even Europe pictures (2006)

But as far as shoots I’ve done for money… well I think I’m pretty much caught up! Hurray.
And I think I’ll stay pretty caught up all the way until the christmas rush.

Here are pictures from the last shoot I did… get this… Friday (two days ago)
These were for an old friend Jason.
He grew up in Park City so that’s where we went.
This was the 3rd time downtown park city to do engagements… and I’m happy say we did all new places.
Park city has a lot of photographic spots to offer.

 001_DSC2620 052_DSC2624

FULL GALLERY HERE

 011_DSC2657

 012_DSC2713

 007_DSC2511

I specially loved how they were creating snow on the slopes and they were willing to go stand out in the field to get some… it was way cold there. (Much warmer downtown)

 005_DSC2491 042_DSC2495

 045_DSC2548

Since they met skiing they’ll probably like this one.

 025_DSC2556

I love how in photography you’ll travel an hour just to get a picture of the sky.

 009_DSC2570 028_DSC2600

The mayor of park city was here and he offered to get them married right then and there. In the end he just gave them a free print.

 048_DSC2597

 023_DSC2936

We were done but I just had to try out one last shot. Looking back i should have done more on this (meaning more poses to choose from)

The Rush is coming

It’ll be another fun and crazy christmas like last year, maybe just as much or more driving but with only 4-5 states.

Then a nice lull again to start getting on some projects that are long since needed to get rolling.

(more…)

Posted by scott at 8 November 2009

Category: Photo Meetups

Tags: , ,

 001_3S08162

Today I attended the PhotowalkingUtah event

It seems that when fall hits I start to be more consistent attender of the photowalks… because things are a bit slower (thankfully)

The theme was LensBaby – everyone had the opportunity to borrow a lens baby and take pictures for a few hours.

I must admit I cheated and did half lensbaby half regular lens.
Lensbaby requires a lot more patience and time to get your shot and I was too often tempted by a really good shot and just grabbed the wide angle and snapped a few.

SEE THE FULL GALLERY HERE

 002_3S08117

More pictures after the JUMP

(more…)

Are we going with MAC as an industry for some actual reason?
Or just because everyone else is doing it? Is it all HYPE a sort of placebo affect?

(FYI: I own a PC and a MAC.)

What actual benefit does MAC have on graphics that everyone says

“If you do anything with graphics or video, 100% hands-down, no option go with a MAC.”

Pictures look real pretty on a MAC and I hope my clients view on a really nice big mac display.
But I run a color calibration to get Real-as-they-should-be-looks and it seems to take away all that niceness so I can view the picture as it really is.
(So doesn’t that erase the benefit of those displays?)
This is because of the way they build their displays and do their color profiles… so should i just be buying a Mac Display?
(Aren’t the color profiles replaced when you do a color calibration?)

(more…)

In One Week

NOTE: Each title is a Link to the FULL gallery

I believe in stretching yourself to such a limit that all the rest of the time everything’s a cake walk.

See how far you can go. I found out I can do 48 shoots in one week.
All fine until I’ve almost went crazy sorting them all then editing 3000 pictures in the last 3-4 days.

This is a long and yet very fun post… like 48 mini-posts all wrapped up into one.

See 48 pics with 48 links after the jump

(more…)